I have spent over forty years in the exam room. As a pediatrician, I’ve had the privilege of watching generations of children grow from infancy into adulthood. I’ve celebrated their milestones, treated their scrapes, and guided their parents through the complexities of childhood development. But today, I find myself at a crossroads. In all my decades of practice, **I have never been so deeply concerned about the health and future of Black children as I am right now.**
Every day in my office, I see a shift that keeps me up at night. I see children who are falling behind on life-saving vaccinations. I see young hearts and minds heavily burdened by the trauma of community violence. I see children as young as elementary age struggling with profound anxiety, crippling depression, and even the unthinkable, thoughts of suicide. Furthermore, I am seeing an epidemic of children who are disturbingly overweight, setting them on a path toward chronic illness before they’ve even reached high school.
I’ve asked myself: *What can I do to change the course for these children?* I realized that simply seeing patients one by one isn’t enough anymore. To make a real difference, I need to pull back the curtain on how the traditional healthcare community treats our children and those in underserved and minority groups. It is time to empower you with the truth and the tools to build your own health system for your family.
Full Transcript
Introduction and Concern for Black Children's Health 0:00
I'm Dr. Mike Lenora, the president of the African American Wellness Project and the past president, of The National Medical Association. I've been a pediatrician for over 45 years and an allergist almost as long. And I have never been so concerned about the health of black children. Each day in my office, I see children who are less vaccinated, more traumatized by violence, some considering suicide. challenged by anxiety and depression and disturbingly overweight.
Challenges Facing Children in Underserved Communities 0:34
I wonder what can I do to change the course of these children. So I've decided to pull the curtain on the way the health community treats our children and those in underserved areas and minority groups. And I'm going to provide you with information.I'm gonna post blogs, radio messages and books to assist you in building your own health system for your family and your children I'm starting with a book called A Safe Plate on how we feed our children without giving up our cultural approach to foods because
Calling Out Health Inequities in Care 1:07
that has both long-term and short- term implications. It appears that for a while we were marching down the road to health equity at a fairly reasonable pace. But that march has now turned into a shuffle. I am Dr. Mike Lenore.
Comments